Another Day, Another Destiny
by Kingdom Liz
Summary: My version of KH2. I don't wanna give too much away, but I'm pretty happy with it so far. SoraxOC, RikuxOC, SquallxOC, and Axel is everyone's manwhore. XD We'll figure out what to do with Kairi later... hehe.
1. Another Day, Another Destiny

**Disclaimer:**

**I do not own Kingdom Hearts, Disney, or any of that stuff. I cannot take full credit for the storyline or the majority of the characters in this story. Nor can I take any credit for the following poem. ENJOY!!! ;) Please review!!**

_**Fading memories..**_

_**reconstructed memories…**_

_**And, a dream-**_

_**a dream of you,**_

_**in a world without you.**_

_**Walking this road**_

_**without you.**_

_**To remake forgotten promises**_

_**and meet you at road's end…**_

_**A scattered dream **_

_**That's like a far-off memory…**_

_**A far-off memory **_

_**That's like a scattered dream…**_

_**I want to line the pieces up—**_

_**Yours, and mine.**_

One.Another Day, Another Destiny

I stretched, taking a deep breath. It was morning; I pushed back the covers and stood, opening the window to let the sun's rays illuminate the room.

The bells over in the train station rang, just as always. I sighed and tied up my boot laces as the train rumbled by outside. I'd overslept a bit, but hey-isn't that what summer is about?

I went to me and my friends' usual meeting place-just as I expected, everyone was there already. I sat down beside Roxas who kissed me on the cheek.

"Morning, babe."

I grinned. "Good morning!"

"God. Does this piss anyone else off?" Kaya said, throwing a pebble against the wall.

I blinked. "Huh?"

"It's Seifer. Didn't you know?" Roxas looked at me, confused.

He sighed and began to explain. "You know how things have been getting stolen around town, right?"

I nodded.

"Well, Seifer and his gang are telling everyone that we're the thieves. Can you believe it?" He shook his head. "It just makes me so mad."

"Maybe we should find out who's really behind it and prove it isn't us." Chiharu suggested.

"But how should we deal with Seifer?" Kaya asked, cracking her knuckles.

I considered her question. "First, we should just worry about clearing our names."

Everyone nodded in agreement, and the four of us grew silent. I looked over at Chiharu, who was digging in her tote.

"SHIT!" she exclaimed, dropping her bag to the floor. "Our – are gone!!"

Startled, Chiharu covered her mouth. The rest of us exchanged glances, unsure of how to respond.

Kaya laughed. "Oh, you mean our --? … What the hell?"

I furrowed my brow.

"Why can't we say --?"

"Do you think someone stole them?" Chiharu wondered aloud, still searching relentlessly for them.

Kaya nodded, standing up. "And they stole the word, too. That rules out the chance that Seifer is behind it – he's totally not that clever."

Roxas stood too. "So, let's go get to the bottom of this."

I followed suit and walked with my friends out through the ally. I took Roxas' hand in mine. "Did you sleep well last night?"

"…" He stopped walking, but didn't answer. It was as though he hadn't even heard me.

"…Roxas?" I turned to face him and gasped. "Roxas!!"

"Oh my god… catch him!" Kaya and Chiharu helped me lower him to the ground gently.

"Is he… ok? Should we get help?" Chiharu wondered, flipping her cell phone open.

I kneeled beside him and grabbed his wrist, searching for a pulse.

"Well, he isn't dead." I said, relieved.

I placed a hand on his cheek and his eyebrow twitched.

"Roxas?"

He opened his blue eyes and gazed at me with a faint smile.

"Sorry.. Guess the heat got to me." He grunted and stood up.

"It's fine. I'm just glad you're ok." I smiled, ruffling his hair.

Chiharu tapped her foot impatiently. "Ok, so if you two are done being all lovey-dovey, let's get going."

So we headed to the tram common. Usually, it was bustling with people by this time of day, but for some reason the streets were somewhat abandoned.

"Let's start at the armor shop." Chiharu suggested.

I waved to the man behind the counter. He had spiky, blonde hair and was wearing a black vest with a bold yellow stripe across it.

"Hey guys. I never thought you all would do something so rotten.."

I couldn't believe it – why would anyone believe that jerk, Seifer?

"We didn't do it, okay?" I said, defensively.

The man simply frowned. "I wish I could believe you, but… who else could have?" There was a hint of sarcasm in his voice. I always knew I hated this guy, deep down.

Kaya took a step forward, preparing her sincerest face. "What all was stolen?"

"Like you don't know." He scoffed. "Go bother someone else."

She appeared to be taken aback by his lack of manners.

"Thanks. I'll be sure to shop here again. Honestly! I can't believe some people…" Kaya complained as we made our way to the accessory shop.

"Don't worry, I'll beat him up for you later," Roxas replied with a smile.

The girl at the Accessory Shop was much more hospitable.

""Oh! Hello, Emiko!" she said, pushing her blonde hair behind her ears.

"Please, don't let me down.." she pleaded. "You're some of my favorite customers."

Chiharu groaned. "Dude. We aren't thieves!"

"Yeah... we were stolen from too, you know." I added.

She looked relieved. "Well then, you need to clear your names."

Kaya exploded. "DUH! What do you think we've been doing?"

The girl shrugged and went back to work.

Well, so far, we hadn't gotten anywhere so we decided to go find Seifer.

"He's probably at the sandlot." Chiharu offered. "Follow me."

Roxas, Kaya and I followed Chiharu through the town, to the sandlot. Sure enough, Seifer and his friends were there.

As always, he was sporting his dorky black beanie – even though it was practically 100 degrees outside. He spotted us immediately and came over; his friends trailing behind.

"So, here are the town's thieves. You've got some nerve to show up here after taking our ---."

"We didn't take them." Roxas replied simply.

Seifer smirked. "And who else would? That was proof that we totally owned you lamers."

"…"

"Don't ever use that word again. Ugh.. you're such a loser." Kaya said, disgusted.

The short, witchlike person named Vivi suddenly broke into a sprint and ran away from us, heading in the direction of the forest screaming.

"MY HANDS ARE HAUNTED!!!!!"

We exchanged a glance, and broke out into laughter. Seifer seemed not to notice, however.

"Hah." Seifer said smugly. "I guess if you get on your knees and beg, maybe I'll let it slide."

He grabbed a struggle club and got into a fighting stance. He looked ridiculous, and I just _had _to say something.

I walked up to him, showing no sign of fear whatsoever. "Oh, really? Well, that's great and all, but I don't know how much damage you're going to be able to do with that goofy blue dildo. Unless you're planning on raping me with it, that is."

"You bitch!" he growled.

Chiharu approached him calmly.

"You called?" She smirked and kneed him in the groin.

"Ungh!" he groaned and collapsed onto the ground.

We burst out laughing and I high-fived her.

"That was fucking amazing."

Seifer's friends helped him up quickly as Chiharu pulled out her camera.

"Say cheeeese!!!" She laughed and snapped a picture.

Not a moment later, it seemed, something sprang out of nowhere, snatching Chiharu's camera and dashing away before we were able to get a good look at it.

"…"

"Was that the thief, you think?" Kaya wondered aloud.

Roxas smirked. "Only one way to find out. Let's go!" He ran after the figure which was moving so quickly it was just a blur in the distance. Good thing Roxas was a fast runner.

Now as for me, I've always been an awful runner, but I did my best not to fall too terribly far behind. I was far past the point of exhaustion when we finally stopped.

We found ourselves in front of the old mansion staring wide-eyed at the creature who'd supposedly stolen from the town. It was silver, and wiggled about in fluid-like motions. It was like nothing any of us had ever seen before.

We approached it with caution. It leapt at me and I stumbled backwards with a yelp, just narrowly missing its attempt to hit me. My friends backed me up, and we all tried to fight back – but to no avail.

For some unknown reason, the creature was untouchable.

I took a breath, trying to form some kind of a plan. However, before I could really get my head around the situation at all, a weapon of some sort materialized in Roxas' hands. It looked pretty much like a giant key.

"Dude, how did you do that?" Chiharu wanted to know.

He didn't respond; just started to swing it around like a sword. It was as though he'd been fighting with it his whole life. Seriously.

Within a minute, he had defeated the odd creature. It vanished, leaving nothing but a few photographs behind, which floated to the ground. I looked at my friends who looked pretty much as speechless as I felt.

"Guess it _was _the thief." I picked up the pictures and flipped through them.

Chiharu shook her head, as if waking up from a daze.

"Roxas, what's that thing you're holding?" I wondered, glancing at the strange weapon.

"The Keyblade." He blurted.

The three of them stood in silence I showed them the pictures. It was a bit odd, really. Roxas was in every single picture.

"Creepy." Kaya observed.

I gave the photos to Chiharu to keep in her bag.

Chiharu shook her head in disbelief. "That was really weird,"

I nodded in agreement. It was getting late, so we decided to go our separate ways once we reached the town square. I kissed Roxas goodnight, and made my way home, but somehow I was unable to shake the feeling that something was wrong… that I needed to stay with Roxas.

_Restoration 12_

"…_Organization miscreants… they've found us."_

"_-But.. why would the nobodies steal photographs?"_

"_Both are nothing but data to them."_

"_The fools.. could never tell the difference."_

"_We are running out of time.."_

"_Namine must make haste."_

I awoke in tears…

on the second day.

((Thanks for reading the first chapter!!! Constructive criticism is always welcome – I'm absolutely positive there must be some errors in here, so feel free to point them out to me and I'll fix them as soon as I can! Also, if you have any suggestions, questions, or comments regarding the plot, characters, or whatever then I would love to hear them as well! Thanks so much for reading, I hope you like my story!))

Emiko


	2. A Mysterious Encounter

Two.A Mysterious Encounter

I wiped the tears from my eyes; it felt as though I'd cried all night without getting any sleep. I decided I must have just had a bad dream and opened the window for some fresh air. I felt all claustrophobic – being inside at the time and decided I needed to go for a walk. I tied up my hair and walked around town for a while before heading to me and my friends' usual meeting place.

They were all there, sitting on boxes and eating blue Popsicles together.

Roxas waved to me. "Hey!"

I waved back and sat down with them. "Do I get one?"

"NO." Kaya and Chiharu replied at once, bursting into laughter.

I managed to suppress a smile.

"Just kidding. Here ya go, fatty." Chiharu said, throwing a Popsicle at my head.

I fumbled to catch it, but failed and it hit the ground.

"Nice catch." Kaya commented.

I groaned and crossed my arms. "That's ok, I only like the red ones anyway."

Kaya laughed. "Know what? We should go to the beach before vacation is over. Let's go to the train station."

"WOO! Beach party!" Chiharu high-fived Kaya and they raced each other there.

Roxas and I walked.

"This town is getting weirder every day." I commented.

"Yeah…" He agreed.

"It's like you never know what's gonna happen ne—"

I stopped. He stopped. We were suddenly face to face with a black hole that had appeared out of nowhere.

"What…?" I stammered, taking a step back. My gut urged me to just run away, but somehow I couldn't. I felt my breath catch as someone stepped out of the void.

I took a few more steps backward; the man was wearing a long black cloak with a hood that concealed his face.… I shivered and rubbed my arms – the air had suddenly grown cold. And then he approached Roxas.

The mysterious man reached a gloved hand toward Roxas and rested it on his cheek. I was in shock. I wanted to do something, but I just couldn't bring myself to. So I watched.

"Who are you??" Roxas yelled. The man lowered his hand slowly.

"You… really don't remember? It's me." He lowered his hood, revealing red hair and startling green eyes. My heart skipped a beat. He was gorgeous.

"No… I don't. Have we met?" Roxas said hesitantly.

The man looked disappointed and shook his head. "Forget about it.."

I stared at him in wonder as he walked away.

"Axel…"

Roxas ran after him and I followed, but he was already gone.

_Restoration 28_

"_Namine, hurry.."_

"Did you see that man…?" Roxas asked me softly.

"Of course I did, Roxas. Did you know him…?" I gazed into his eyes, as though I was searching for an answer.

He shook his head. "I… I'm not sure."

I decided to let it go. "Well, guess we should get going then."

He nodded, and we entered the train station in silence. Chiharu and Kaya were waiting there for us.

I hoisted my bag onto my shoulder and followed them to the counter where the ticket guy was standing, looking rather bored. He barely glanced at us as we approached.

"What do you need?" He asked, his voice dripping with indifference.

"Well, considering that we're at a ticket booth in a train station, obviously we're here to buy a couch. Geez." Kaya snapped and we all laughed.

His expression remained the same. "Funny. Do you have money?" he yawned.

"Yes. Do you have a sense of humor?" Chiharu teased.

I smiled and shook my head. "We'd like four tickets to the beach."

"That will cost you 1200 munny." He stuck out his hand stiffly.

"One second." I held up a finger.

We dug up all of our munny and pooled it all together. Counting it out, I concluded that we were 273 short.

"Don't think he'll spot us the rest of it." I concluded.

"Great…" Chiharu grumbled.

Mr. Rude Ticket Man smirked.

"If you kids are done playing, you should probably get out of line."

We looked around. There was nobody else in the entire freaking station.

"There IS no line!" Kaya exclaimed, frustrated.

He shrugged and ignored us. "Oh, come on guys. Let's just go." I said, walking away.

_Restoration 48_

"_..Is it really that hard to make a beach?"_

"_We'd be… giving the enemy another entry point."_

((YAY!!! The second chapter! I'm so excited!! Also, I would love to hear from you, so please let me know if you love it, hate it, etc. ;) Thanks again!! ))

Emiko


	3. Namine

Three.Namine

I woke up happy that a new day was about to begin. The sun was shining brightly. The air was clear and crisp. I took a deep breath and reached for my pink hair tie.

I tried not to allow my mind to linger on all of the strange thoughts and feelings I'd been having lately. I walked to the usual place, but no one was there. Instead, I found a note from Chiharu on the bench.

We're really gonna go today.

Meet at the station at noon.

-Chi

I sighed, stuffing the note into my messenger bag. On my way to the train station, I spotted my friends who turned and waved at me. I smiled and ran to join them.

Roxas hugged me and spun me around. "Ready to go, Emiko?"

"Yep!" I gave him a thumbs up, but his eyes weren't looking at me anymore. They were focused on something behind me. Something that had wiped the smile clean off of his face. I swallowed and looked at Kaya and Chiharu.

They weren't moving. It was as though they were frozen in time. Slowly, I looked back over my shoulder. And that's when I saw _her_.

A girl was standing there.

"Hello, Roxas." She took a few steps closer to us, and I spread my arms to show her I wasn't going to let her get to him.

"Who are you?! And what do you want with him??" I demanded

She looked surprised for some reason, but shook her head. "I wanted to meet you, Roxas. At least once…"

And then she was gone.

_Restoration 79_

"_Was that Namine made of data…?"_

"_No."_

"_..She hijacked the data herself."_

"…"

"Roxas, what was that about?" I looked at him expectantly.

He looked and the ground and shook his head. "I… wish I knew."

"Ready to go?" Kaya put an arm over my shoulder.

I stood there, dumbfounded.

"Did you.. did anyone else see that?" Roxas stammered.

Chiharu looked around, doubtfully. "See what?"

He took a deep breath.

"That girl who just talked to me."

They exchanged glances. "Umm… you mean Emiko?" Kaya laughed.

"…Nevermind. I need to go see something." Roxas turned and started to walk away.

"Where are you going?" I pleaded, grabbing his hand.

"To the old mansion."

"I'm coming too, then."

He smiled, giving in. "Alright."

"Ok, well don't take too long. Chiharu and I will go on to the train station and wait for you, ok?" Kaya said, and they left.

I followed Roxas to the mansion, trying to make small talk along the way. As we made our way through the woods, the wind was dancing through the tree's leaves and branches. Patches of sunlight touched the ground here and there. Being in the forest always calmed my nerves.

"So, why are we going to the mansion? No one lives there, you know." I asked.

He ducked under a low-hanging branch. "Oh, I don't know…"

We came to the clearing in front of the mansion at last. The gate, which was usually locked, was wide open.

I sighed at the sight of it, almost wishing I hadn't come. A gust of cold air sent a chill through me and I shivered.

It was strangely cool for a summer day. The old mansion loomed above us, intimidating as ever, but somehow enticing us to enter it. I knew somehow that I had to stay with him. I had to make sure he was going to be ok.

"Hey," I hesitated before continuing. "..Tell me what's really going on with you. You've been acting strange lately."

He sighed. "Nothing, really. I've just always wanted to come here."

I frowned and sat down in the grass. "Stop lying to me!"

"But… you'd never even believe me." he protested.

"Try me."

"…I've been having some dreams about a boy – Sora - that I've never met before. And I've had a couple encounters with people who I think are connected to him somehow." He admitted.

I frowned. "Oh…"

I thought about it. Instead of making things clearer, he'd just confused me even more.

My cheeks burned as his voice fell to a soft whisper – almost inaudible.

"I think she's leading me here."

((Yes!! I am finally done rewriting all three chapters, and I think they're even better than before now!  As always, read, review, and ENJOY!! Chapt. Four is soon to come!!))

Emiko


	4. No Other Choice

Four.No Other Choice

I stood, deciding that the only way to get answers was to go in there and look for them.

"Let's go, Roxas."

He nodded and – somewhat reluctantly, it seemed – followed me inside.

The mansion was dark and cold – the place gave me the creeps. The scent of dust was absolutely overwhelming and he sneezed.

"Oh.. let's just go." he groaned, rubbing his temples.

I stopped and looked directly at him.

"Roxas. You're the one who wanted to come here. I'm not leaving until we look around, ok?" I spun on my heel and started up the staircase. The hallway at the top of the stairs went in either direction.

"Which way?" I demanded.

Roxas blinked, unsure. "I dunno… left?"

I shrugged. "Left it is then." I grabbed the nearest doorknob and flung the door wide open.

He gasped audibly. "Oh… my god."

_That girl_ was sitting in the corner.

Her light blonde hair gracefully framed her pale face. Her blue eyes almost glowed as she looked at him expectantly. Just as before, her expression was almost sad, even when she smiled at us. Her voice was fragile as she spoke.

"I knew you would come, Roxas."

He was too stunned to say anything. Apparently he was fixated with the drawings taped to the blank, white walls.

"I…" he was speechless. "What…?"

I wasn't though.

"Who the hell are you and how do you know my boyfriend?" I demanded.

I glared at the girl, who seemed to be shocked.

"You… can see me?"

My laugh was dripping with sarcasm. "Umm... yeah! What? Are you trying to be invisible or something?"

She shook her head seriously.   
"You aren't supposed to be able to…"

I put my hands on my hips. "And why's that?"

"You aren't real."

"…"

"Roxas, this girl is wacko. Let's go." I grabbed his wrist and made for the door.

"Wait, Emiko…" he pleaded. "Why do you say that, err.. what's your name?"

"Namine. And I say that because she isn't real. At least… she shouldn't be."

He sighed. "Can you tell me what's really going on with me?"

"Well.. About a year ago, some things happened, and I had to take apart the memories chained together in Sora's heart. But now... I'm putting them all back exactly the way they were. It's taken me a long time, but pretty soon Sora will be his old self again. The process has been affecting you, too, Roxas."

"But, why? What do I have to do with him? I don't even know who he is!" he demanded.

"You and Sora are connected. And.. in order for him to become whole again, he needs you." She replied.

"What for…?"

"Roxas, you… hold half of what he is. You are two halves of the same person. … You were never meant to exist."

I shook my head, trying to clear it. Too much information was getting crammed in, and I could feel a headache coming. None of this made sense… I felt like I was going to be sick.

"Go, Roxas. Sora needs you." She stood up, and a black hole appeared beside her like the one I'd seen before.

"Namine." I took a step toward her. "What's gonna happen if we go in there? Are you trying to kill us or something?"

She shook her head. "I'm not, I swear. But… I don't know what will happen to you once you're in there. I only know that he has to go – it's the only way to revive Sora. Nobodies like us don't really exist anyway, Roxas. We are incomplete.

"Go now. And… good luck."

I stared blankly at her as she stepped into the void and vanished.

"Well… are you going to go, Roxas?" I looked into his eyes, and I could see that he felt as lost as I did.

With slight hesitation, he nodded and returned my gaze. I bit my lower lip and did my best not to cry - which was pointless because he'd seen me cry so many times. Roxas smiled sadly and brushed my brunette bangs away from my eyes

"Oh, Emiko…" He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close. "I'll be ok, I promise."

"You know I'm not letting you go without me, right?"

He laughed and kissed me on the nose. "I wouldn't have expected anything less from you."

"Get a room!"

I spun around, feeling my cheeks redden. I guess I should have expected Chiharu and kaya to come looking for us after a while, but it's like Roxas and I had been in our own little world for a few minutes. Well, it was nice while it lasted.

"I _told_ you they were probably having sex!" Chiharu exclaimed.

I laughed. "Yeah, because we're _totally_ naked and everything."

"Ok. Spill. What's going on that we don't know about?" kaya demanded, eyeing the black hole thing. "And what is _that_?"

I shook my head. "No time to explain right now. Just come with us, ok?" I said, approaching the void. "…Unless you'd rather stay behind, that is."

Roxas looked at me seriously. "You sure this is a good idea, babe?"

I gave his hand the death grip and smiled at him. "What's the worst that could happen? Don't let go!"

I took a deep breath and went in. A silent scream echoed in my mind as our hands slipped apart and my world was engulfed in darkness.

((Chapter Four is here!!! Ohh how exciting! I wonder what will happen next?? I cannot thank you enough for reading!! Hopefully I'll have the next chapter written soon. :D ))

- Emiko


	5. Dive Into the Heart

(( I'm on a roll!!! Chapter five!! WOOOT! Enjoy, and remember :

I don't own kingdom hearts or Disney or blah blah etc. ALSO- I uploaded my original character' profiles to my fanfic. profile page in case anyone is interested. ;)

Many thanks to hitman33333 for reviewing – and be sure to check their KH story out too! ))

Five.Dive Into the Heart

The air was icy hot as it rushed past me, and I shivered. I opened my eyes to complete darkness and searched for any trace of light or some sign that I was not alone – but with no luck. I had no choice but to wait until I stopped falling.

Not a moment later, my free fall had slowed to a halt, and I found myself standing in the center of a circular platform in the middle of nowhere. I was on what looked like a stained glass window – a really big one.

I weighed the circumstances in my mind. I was lost, alone, cold, and scared, but at least I could see now. I decided to call out and see if anyone was nearby.

"Roxas!!! Chiharu?! Kaya!! Is anyone here??"

Instead of echoing back at me, my voice seemed to be sucked up into the still, cool, air. As though I were in a vacuum. After several moments of silence, it was pretty clear that I had to figure out how to get out of here on my own. I shivered and rubbed my arms for warmth, trying to come up with a plan.

"_Do not be afraid.."_

I froze. Had I really heard that, or was my mind playing tricks on me…?

The floor began to shake, and I braced myself for whatever was coming. Three smaller, stone platforms rose out of the floor, forming the points of a triangle around me. Each seemed to have its own aura of light around it.

"_Choose wisely. He depends upon your choices, starting here and now."_

Something had appeared on each of the three platforms as the voice was speaking. I examined them and found that there was a weapon on each… I was supposed to choose a weapon?? I didn't know the first thing about fighting… I usually left that to my other friends.

But, I decided out of the three, my best bet was the shield. I wasn't really sure why, but I picked it up anyway.

"_The power of healing. Kindness to aid friends. Is this the power you seek?"_

I blinked, staring blankly at the foreign object in my hands.

"Uhh… sure?"

The shield glowed brightly, blinding me for a moment, and then it disappeared.

"_Your path is set. Now, what will you give up in exchange?"_

I scratched my head, wondering why I had to do this at all.

"Maybe I'm dreaming, and none of this really matters… Maybe I passed out or I'm going crazy or something…"

Either way, I had to choose something for this to end. I approached the sword.

"_The power of the warrior. Invincible courage. A sword of terrible destruction. You give up this power?"_

"Whatever. I guess so." I shrugged, examining the blade. It looked a bit dull, really… It lit up like the sun and I cursed.

"OW! That fucking hurt! Can't you make it disappear without melting my eyes out?"

"_You've chosen the power of the guardian. You've given up the power of the warrior. Is this the form you choose?"_

I rolled my eyes; this was getting old fast. "Yes, that's the form I choose. Ugh. Can I LEAVE now?"

The floor began to quake violently beneath me again. But this time, it shattered into a bazillion pieces and I fell through the middle. Now.. falling, darkness, and being alone are pretty much my three main fears. But, after all of this, I swear I will be cured of that.

I landed not-so-gracefully on a second platform, similar to the first, and stumbled forward trying to catch my balance.

"_There will be times you have to fight; keep your light burning strong."_

"Fight…?" I looked around, nervously. Sure enough, a bunch of silvery guys like the one I'd watched Roxas fight off a couple of days ago were rising up from the platform, eager for a fight.

"Today is **so** not my day…" I mumbled, wondering how the hell I was supposed to fend them off.

"_But don't be afraid. You hold the mightiest weapon of all."_

It's as though the stupid voice was reading my mind. I was scared as hell.

"Yeah?" I challenged. "And what would that be? You took away the damned sword!"

As if to answer me, something appeared, magically, in my hand. A really big key, like the one Roxas had fought with that one time. Accept mine was entirely silver. (His had a gold handle.) What did he call it again…? A keyblade?

I shrugged, deciding an obnoxiously large key was better than nothing. I ran at the nearest enemy and swung the Keyblade like a baseball bat at it's head.

Each enemy took about 4 hits to finish off, and I took some damage myself. It was hard work, but I was able to defeat them all within about five minutes. I rubbed my arm- it was sore from all the swinging. After a while, the key got kinda heavy.

All in all, though, I was in pretty good shape. Just a few cuts and bruises on my arms and legs. I soon decided that perhaps fighting in a dress wasn't such a great idea.

"_Be careful."_

I stared at the white double doors that had appeared out of nowhere. They weren't attached to anything, so it was pretty safe to assume it was another portal. I pressed a hand against the door on the right.

"_Once you enter this door, the choices you make… will determine the fate of many worlds. With whom will you side… when the end is near?"_

I blinked, not really understanding what I'd just heard, and grabbed the handle.

"…Ok," I breathed. "Let's see where this goes."

_Restoration 99_

"_They… were real?"_

"_Apparently some things are still_

…_out of our control."_

((YAY!!! Hope you liked reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!! Please review, as always and let me know what you think! ;) till next time!))


	6. Without You

Six.Without You

I found myself inside of a room so white, it almost hurt my eyes. The floor, the walls, the ceiling… it was all white. So was the centerpiece of the room.

I hadn't the slightest idea what the object was, but I was pretty sure it wasn't a giant egg – which is exactly what it looked like to me. The door shut behind me and disappeared.

"Hellooo?" I called out, not really expecting any response aside from my own echo.

"Emiko…?"

I smiled, grateful that I had finally found him. I tossed the Keyblade aside and ran to Roxas, giving him a bear hug.

"What happened to you, babe?" he wondered, noticing the blood seeping from a particularly large gash on my leg.

"Oh, umm… it's a long story. I'll tell you later, but I don't think you'll ever believe it." I replied hastily.

He shook his head. "I'm getting to the point where I'd believe just about anything anybody told me… It's like everything I once knew to be true is turning out to be… an illusion."

I nodded. "I know what you mean. But I'm so glad to see you again. Have you seen Chiharu or Kaya…?"

He shook his head sadly.

_Restoration 100_

The floor began to rumble and my eyes widened.

"Roxas, what's going on?!"

He stumbled forward and grabbed his head.

"Ngh!" he winced. "I… don't know..!"

I frowned. "Are you ok?"

"I.." he looked down at his hands.

"Oh… no!" I gasped, feeling the tears well up in my eyes.

He was fading away.

_I don't know what will happen to you once you're in there. I only know that he has to go – it's the only way to revive Sora. Nobodies like us don't really exist anyway, Roxas. _

Her words suddenly made sense. It was happening. Roxas was returning to Sora…

No! I grabbed onto him.

"Roxas!! Don't leave me!" I cried. "I.. I love you!!"

He kissed me softly on the lips.

"I'm.. so sorry." He wiped a tear from my cheek as one slowly rolled down his own.

"Please… don't forget about me.. I never meant to leave you, Emiko. …I love you too."

I watched in horror as he vanished completely, leaving nothing but a memory.

I dropped to my knees and buried my face in my hands, sobbing miserably. Along with Roxas, I'd lost a part of me.

**((This chapter's considerably shorter and sadder than any I've written so far, but I think it's pretty good. Hope you like it!!! I'm hoping the next chapter will be better! Sora is coming!!!! lol ;) ))**

**- Emiko**


	7. Sora

Seven.Sora

I cried, wishing there was somebody who would comfort me. Anybody. And, wouldn't you know it? My wish came true.

"Hey, why are you crying?" a hand touched my shoulder gently, and I looked up.

A boy with kind blue eyes and a sympathetic smile was kneeling in front of me. I shook my head, unable to talk. I blushed slightly – he had eyes like Roxas'…

…Roxas.

I started crying again.

"Oh, nononono!! I'm sorry! Is… there anything I can do to help?" he pleaded.

I did my best to dry my eyes and look back up at him, but my throat was making it difficult to speak.

"I… don't think so." I croaked.

He frowned. "Do you wanna talk about it?"

"Umm… not now. Who are you…?" I asked.

He blushed. "Oh, I'm sorry. I should have introduced myself. I'm Sora."

My eyes widened. Sora…! I told myself to calm down – it could be a different Sora, after all.

I cleared my throat. "My name is… Emiko."

He tilted his head thoughtfully. "Emiko… have we _met_ before?

"You.. Roxas? Can you hear me?!" I looked at him hopefully, but he just raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, you sure you're ok?" he laughed. "My name's Sora, remember?"

I sighed. "Yeah, I'm sorry.. I just miss him."

"Roxas? Is he a friend of yours?" Sora nodded, like he understood. "I've lost my friends, too." he admitted.

"But, hey! Umm… don't be sad! Let's look for them together!" he smiled, helping me to my feet.

I considered explaining to him why I couldn't exactly _find _someone who was inside of him, but thought better of it and smiled back. I suddenly remembered that my Keyblade was still lying on the floor, and picked it up.

"Let's get out of here, ok? I – umm…" he was staring at my hand. "How did you get that…?"

I blushed; I must have looked pretty ridiculous holding a giant key. "Oh! This..? It's uhh… nothing. I … umm… it's crazy. You don't want me to go into all of that." I laughed nervously.

But he didn't seem to accept that. "Is that…? Can I see it for a second, please?"

I hesitated, wondering what he was planning to do with it, but gave in and handed it over. He looked it over, shaking his head in disbelief.

"This is almost exactly like mine…" he murmured, swinging it a few times. It reappeared in my hand again with a flash of light.

"Unbelievable. It's happening to you too, isn't it?"

I blinked. "What…? You have one too? What's happening?" All of my questions came out at once.

He nodded. "Yeah, but somehow you're able to wield them too. It's strange… But listen, we should get out of here and talk about this somewhere else. I don't like being in this room."

I nodded, realizing I really had nowhere else to go.

"Sora!" a squeaky-ish voice exclaimed.

"Huh?" he spun around. "King Mickey!"

A very short person wearing a cloak like the one I'd seen Axel in a few days ago ran up to us.

"We need to get out of here!" he said importantly, glancing at me and doing a double take. "Huh? Who's this, Sora?"

Sora gestured to me. "Oh, this is Emiko, Your Majesty."

The king pushed back his hood, revealing that he was.. a mouse? I blinked at him.

"The name's Mickey!" he extended a gloved hand to me, and I shook it with an awkward smile. A mouse? A talking mouse? And he was a _KING_?

I sighed and let it go. After all, enough weird things had happened lately that I wasn't sure of anything anymore.

"Nice to meet you." I replied politely.

I tried to clear my head, and figure out what I was supposed to do next. My friends were gone, my boyfriend was inside of a boy who didn't know it, and a talking mouse, who apparently was a king, had appeared out of nowhere. I felt like screaming, but maintained my cool.

"Umm.. what's going on?" I asked as calmly as I could manage.

The king looked around suspiciously and put a finger to his mouth.

"We can't talk here. Follow me."

Mickey summoned a portal and pulled his hood back up. We escaped just as the alarm started up.

**((Finally finished it! I'm kind of disappointed with this chapter, but for some reason I've been having trouble writing the past couple of days. It may be another few days or so before I can finish the next chapter. But, I hope you will keep reading, despite how horribly written this is. _Very_ likely that I will go back and edit this later. But ANYWAYS! XD Thanks for reading you guys, and please review!))**

**-Emiko**


	8. Nobodies

Eight.Nobodies.

I stepped out into the sunlight. Into a town that lacked familiarity. Everything was happening so fast. All in one day, I'd left the only world I'd ever known, been separated from my friends, lost my boyfriend forever; and I just wanted to turn back time and go home. Droplets formed in my eyes, and I blinked them away.

I felt numb. Like nothing made a difference either way anymore. I stepped up to the stone wall beside me, gazing out into the horizon, and allowed my mind to become completely blank. A cool breeze kissed my face, and I closed my eyes.

"…Are you going to be ok?" he stood beside me, but I didn't open my eyes.

"Not for awhile." I whispered, barely moving my lips. I needed to lie down. I needed to cry until I couldn't anymore. My body was exhausted, and I ached all over.

"Well, we'd better get moving. I don't think anybody's gonna follow us here, but ya can't be too careful!" Mickey warned, pulling up his hood and motioning for us to follow him.

So, we did. We followed him down a few stone steps, into an abandoned marketplace, and past a few buildings before arriving at our destination. The king knocked on the door once before it swung open to reveal an old man with round glasses, a tall hat, and a long beard. His eyes lit up when he saw us, and he stepped back a bit, allowing us to enter.

"Sora, my boy! It's been dreadfully long since I've seen or heard from you!" he locked the door behind us and smiled happily. "Oh! And if it isn't the king himself!" he gestured to a nearby table and chairs. "Please! Make yourselves at home, I was just making tea." We sat down and he poured a cup for each of us.

"Thank you, Merlin." Sora said with a smile. "How's everything going here? Hollow Bastion looks really different than I remember…"

Merlin nodded solemnly. "Yes, it is different. The heartless have returned… or maybe they never completely left. Either way, we've been fighting to keep this town under control, but it's been getting more difficult."

"The heartless? But we got rid of all of them!" Sora exclaimed.

"You _were_ able to prevent an immense effusion of Heartless from the great darkness; make no mistake about that. But the Heartless are darkness made real - and darkness is in every heart. The Heartless are fewer. But while darkness exists in a single heart, it will be difficult to get rid of them all." Merlin explained.

I blinked. "Heartless…? You mean those weird silver things I fought earlier?"

"Silver things…? Oh! You must be talking about the Nobodies!" Mickey replied.

"Nobodies? What are those?" Sora wondered.

The king thought about it for a minute. "At times, if someone with a strong heart and will - be they evil or good - becomes a Heartless, the empty shell they leave behind begins to act with a will of its own. These shells are called Nobodies, because they don't really exist, and are incapable of feeling emotions because they have no hearts. The silver Nobodies you are probably referring to are called Dusk, and are the most common form of nobody.

Some, however, are larger and more powerful, and resemble normal people. These powerful Nobodies have formed a dangerous group called Organization XIII. They command the lesser Nobodies.

Not much is yet known about these Nobodies, other than they have some sort of goal – unlike the heartless who tend to act on instinct. We have to figure out what that goal is before it's too late. You all up for it?"

There were a few moments of silence before anyone spoke up.

"Yeah.." Sora nodded, sounding a little overwhelmed.

"Great!" Mickey said happily, standing up and heading for the door. "Well, I guess I'd better go, then!"

Sora stopped him. "Wait! …What about Donald and Goofy?"

"Aww shucks, Sora. You don't need them anymore. Besides, I need them back at the castle! We're having some problems of our own now." Mickey replied, beginning to open the door, but stopping to turn and face us again. "And, I almost forgot.. take these. They will come in handy!"

He handed Sora a pile of black fabric and left.

Sora blinked and began to unfold it. There were five black, hooded robes like the ones Organization XIII wore.

"Thanks," I murmured as he handed me one.

Merlin seemed to have read my mind. "They're disguises. This journey is going to be a long and difficult one. You two need to get your rest. Sadly, I only have one bed…" he gestured to a small bed in the corner of the room. "So, I suppose you can either share it or fight over who gets to sleep in it. Good night, you two!"

He shuffled silently out of the room, leaving Sora and I standing there awkwardly together.

"You take the bed." he decided, tossing a blanket and pillow onto the floor.

"But.. what about you? I could sleep on the floor if you want the bed…"

He shook his head. "I'm not going to let you sleep on the floor."

I smiled at him, wanting nothing more than to leap into his arms. He reminded me of Roxas in so many ways.. But instead, I just thanked him and climbed into bed.

"Night, Emiko." Sora whispered from the floor.

A faint smile flickered across my lips and I closed my eyes. "Goodnight."

_Maybe I haven't really lost Roxas after all…_

**((I finally finished it: ) Thanks again to hitman33333 for reviewing! Also, be sure to check out his Kingdom Hearts fanfic: A Promise Broken. And, if anybody actually reads this, I would really appreciate it if you would give me a little feedback. ;) Thanks!!))**

**-Emiko**


	9. The Journey Ahead

((Just a quick reminder: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, Disney, most of the characters, or the original plot idea. ;) ))

Nine.The Journey Ahead.

I awoke the next morning feeling fully rested and excited for the day's events to unfold. I stretched and sat up, squinting as the sunlight coming in through the window struck my eyes. I looked down at Sora; he was still fast asleep. My mind wandered as I leaned back against the wall and crossed my legs in front of me.

Was I falling in love with Sora? What was going to happen to me now? I took a deep breath, closing my eyes for a moment. There was no way to tell what time it was, but I guessed it was around noon or so.

I flinched when the front door swung open and someone came inside. I opened my eyes; two tall, attractive boys entered the room followed by a tough-looking girl with long, brown hair. But they weren't what had caught my attention.

Each of the boys was carrying a girl. I couldn't bring myself to move, I just sat there staring at them. Somehow, they'd found Chiharu and Kaya. The boys set my friends down, gently, on the couch, and the girl approached me with a smile.

"Hey there! I don't believe we've met – my name is Tifa!"

"I'm Emiko. Umm… are you all friends of Sora's?"

She nodded and introduced the boys to me. "This is Cloud.." she put her arm around the tall, muscular, blonde guy.

"And, this is Squall." she nodded toward the equally attractive brown-haired, gray-eyed guy who had a pretty deep scar running down his forehead to the side of his nose.

I smiled at them, feeling a tinge of warmth on my cheeks. Feeling somewhat bashful all of a sudden, I quietly asked if my friends were ok.

"You know them?" Cloud asked. "Well… they're just asleep, I think. You can try to wake them up if you want."

I nodded and sat on the couch beside Chiharu.

"Chi…?" I touched her shoulder and she stirred slightly. "Wake up… it's morning!"

She grumbled sleepily and opened her eyes.

"Oh, it's you, Emiko." she yawned, sitting up. "Where are we…?"

I shook my head and smiled at her sadly. "It's… a long story."

Chiharu shrugged and glanced over at Kaya. "Woah, is she dead?" she laughed, deciding it would be fun to poke Kaya in the side until she woke up.

Tifa laughed and knelt down beside Sora. "Sora, what are you doing on the floor?"

He groaned and rolled over, pulling the blanket over his head.

"Come on, Sora. Time to –"

"Tifa." Cloud said sternly, stopping her in mid-sentence.

"Yes?" she stood up, giving him her full attention.

"Go see if Cid's done with the repairs yet. We need to decide what we're going to do soon."

Tifa nodded and left the room.

"What's going on?" Kaya asked, slapping Chiharu's hand away from her. Guess she'd gotten tired of being poked repeatedly.

"Oh, hey Emiko." she smiled at me.

Squall sat down in front of the three of us. "Tell me where you're from and how you got here."

I sighed. "We're from Twilight Town. We met a girl named Namine who created a portal which we went through. Then we were separated. I ran into Sora, and then King Mickey brought us here."

He looked at my friends. "And you two?"

Chiharu and Kaya exchanged glances.

"Well, same as what Emiko just said, except I don't remember anything after we were separated. It's like there's a hole in my memory from the time I entered the void to when I woke up just now… What about you, Chi?" Kaya elbowed her playfully.

Chiharu was busy drooling over Squall though, so she didn't seem to hear. Kaya laughed.

"Chiharu? He's probably going to think you like him or something if you keep doing that."

She blinked, her cheeks turning red. "Hah… yeah. Same as Kaya. I can't remember a thing."

Cloud was gazing out the window thoughtfully. "It's strange. We found you both in the middle of nowhere…"

Tifa hurried back into the room, breaking the awkward silence that had followed. "Hey! Umm.. Cid says the repairs on the ship should be complete by tonight, so we should figure out what we're going to do. Oh! And the Gummi Ship won't carry more than five passengers at a time."

I mentally counted the number of people in the room. There were seven, so at least two would have to stay behind.

I shot a glance over at Sora; he was just getting up. He yawned and stood up. "Hey guys."

I grinned playfully at him. "It's about time you got up."

Squall ran a hand through his hair. "So, any volunteers to stay behind?"

Tifa raised a hand happily. "Cloud and me can stay and take care of things here!"

Squall turned to Cloud. "You know how to work the computer's system?"

Cloud nodded. "I can handle it."

"The rest of us are going to leave tonight, then. Unless one of you wants to stay here, that is. Obviously that isn't an option for Sora, though." Squall informed us.

No one protested. We were leaving tonight.

**((Yay for chapter nine! Once again, I'd like to thank hitman33333 for his unyielding support thus far! I'm so excited to finally get this thing going! I hope you like it, and don't forget to review so I can get feedback from you all!! ;) Thanks so much, everyone!))**

**-Emiko**


	10. Blast Off!

((Disclaimer: I own Kingdom Hearts, Disney, all of the characters, and every single little detail of this plot. NOT!!!!!!))

Ten.Blast Off!

The Gummi Ship… was that what they'd called it? Well, whatever it was, it was pretty crammed inside. I was practically sitting on top of Squall – a fact which less than pleased Chiharu and kaya who'd spent the past few hours arguing over who should get to date him. Because of the lack of space, it had grown uncomfortably warm rather quickly.

I took off my jacket, being extra careful not to jab Squall in the face with my arm. "It's really hot in here.." I whined.

"Naaahh… really? I never noticed." Chiharu retorted.

Kaya knocked on the sound-proof glass window separating us from the cockpit – where Sora was.

"Heeey, isn't there air conditioning on this thing?"

I sighed. "There's a reason it's called sound-proof, you know."

She just shrugged, pulling a bright green iPod out of her bag. "Worth a shot."

Sora stood and opened the door to the back of the ship so he could talk to us. "Hey, the passenger seat is open, if someone wants to sit up here with me."

The three of us jumped up at once and scrambled to get there first, but Sora just laughed. "There's only room for one of you, now."

I looked at my friends, and Kaya whispered something in Chiharu's ear – I couldn't hear what. But Chiharu grinned. "Hahaha! Yeah, you're right. You should sit up there, Emiko."

"Thanks, guys." I rolled my eyes and followed Sora to the front.

He pulled the door shut behind us with a click, and I sat down next to him. It was notably cooler and less crowded in the front of the Gummi Ship, and I was hyped to be alone with Sora at last.

"Be sure to buckle up. This thing goes fast." he warned.

I nodded and strapped myself in, eyeing the control panel. _Geez, I hope he knows what he's doing.._

"I'm not even completely sure where we need to go first.. wanna just land on the first planet we see?" he asked me.

I laughed. "Your call. But if we die, I'm totally blaming you."

I squealed as he pushed the blast off button and sent us flying out of the atmosphere so fast that I found myself being forced violently backwards into the seat. It took my breath away, but not half as much as the view did.

I looked out of the window to my right and gasped. Everything was a blur of color and light.

Sora grinned at me. "Isn't this cool?" he gushed, sending the ship rocketing forward in a crazy, upside-down spiral.

"Heck yes! I can't wait to get to see another world!" I exclaimed happily.

He laughed. "Yeah, you're gonna love it. I'm kind of excited myself."

I nodded and a short silence fell over us. I leaned my head against the window and closed my eyes, wondering what kind of adventure was in store for us once we landed.

_"Hey… Emiko?"_

_I opened my eyes to look at him._

_"Yeah?"_

_He blushed a little. "Were you and Roxas… together?"_

_My cheeks burned a little and I looked away for a second before responding. "Umm… well, yeah. We were, I mean. He… umm, he's gone now though. So…" my voice trailed off; I could feel the tears coming, and my throat was beginning to swell._

_I blinked several times and looked up, trying to keep him from noticing._

_Sora frowned and looked down. "I'm sorry, that was inconsiderate of me… But, there was something I wanted to tell you.."_

_My heart skipped a beat. "What was it…?"_

_I gazed hopefully into his gorgeous, blue eyes; I could tell he was trying to decide if he really wanted to tell me._

_"I… really like you, Emiko."_

_If I hadn't been strapped into the seat, I would have jumped up and hugged him. But instead, I smiled at him. _

"I really like you too, Sora."

"You… what?"

My vision went black and my senses returned to me. I became painfully aware that I was drooling all over myself. I had fallen asleep - apparently with my mouth open - and I'd been dreaming, but unfortunately for me, I hadn't just dreamed up that last line. I'd actually said it out loud.

I wiped away the slobber with the back of my hand and reluctantly met Sora's gaze.

I opened my mouth to speak, then closed it again. _ What do I tell him? The truth? Or should I make something up?_

"Huh?" I decided playing dumb was a safe bet.

He blinked. "You just said 'I really like you too, Sora.', but I didn't say anything…"

"Hahaha… what? I didn't say anything – I was asleep just now! Maybe that was wishful thinking, hmm?" I joked, trying to make it funny. He wasn't laughing, however, which made me feel even more like an idiot.

I wasn't sure if he thought I liked him now or not, but to my relief, he let it go.

"Ok, well we just landed a moment ago. But listen, if there's something you want to tell me.." he looked at me almost hopefully.

I blinked, fully aware that my face was probably as pink as the dress I was wearing.

"Uh… nope! Not a thing! So, let's go! Ok?" I said, flustered.

I quickly removed my safety belt and hopped out of the chair as the exit to the Gummi Ship began to open.

Sora stood speechless for no longer than a couple of seconds before nodding and going to get our friends from the back.

I walked down the steps, wondering if maybe I should have just told him the truth. I mean, so what if I liked him a little bit? What if he liked me back…? I shook my head and took a breath of fresh air, trying to clear the stray thoughts from it.

It wasn't worth worrying over anyway; I'd tell him in time.

((I loved writing this chapter! XD The characters are constantly suprising me! It's like they're writing the story themselves!! haha ok, so umm please, please PLEASE REVIEW!!! Know why? Because right now I have five reviews, and they're all from the same person. And I'm going to give him some kind of prize, because the rest of you… I don't know who you are!!!! Thanks to EVERYONE who's been reading, but ESPECIALLY to hitman33333, because he is amazing. So he gets a star. -sticks gold star on his forehead- XP If you want one, then review and maybe I'll give you one too! lol That's all for my little rant for now. ;) Hope you like the story!))


	11. Land of Dragons

((Disclaimer: ME NO OWN KINGDOM HEARTS OR MULAN.))

Eleven.Land of Dragons.

I hopped off of the ship, glad to be back on solid ground. We'd found ourselves in a small clearing, pretty much surrounded by bamboo. There were a couple of boulders nearby as well.

"So… where exactly are we?" Kaya asked nobody in particular.

Sora started to answer her, but was interrupted when an Asian-looking boy approached us, clearing his throat. He was wearing heavy armor, as though he was about to engage in some serious combat. What had really caught my attention, though, was the small, red lizard perched on his shoulder.

"Hey there! My name's Ping, and I was just about to head to the encampment over there. Are you guys going too?" I stifled a laugh; he sounded very much like a she…

Sora gasped. "Mushu! I've missed you!"

"Umm…. what?" Kaya laughed. "He just said his name was Ping, Sora!"

The lizard jumped onto the ground in front of us. "Sora! Man, I haven't seen you in who knows how long!"

"EEP!! The lizard can talk?!" Kaya bent down to look at him more closely, and he glared at her.

"I ain't no lizard!! I'm a dragon!" he retorted, crossing his arms and turning away from her.

Ping scratched his head. "You know him?"

"Know him?? Man, we used to kick all kinds of bad guy butt together! Yeah, you know, I helped this guy out of a lot of tight spots. 'Cause I'm mighty dragon! Right, Sora?"

Sora laughed. "Something like that.."

"So, what are your names?" Ping asked us.

"Kaya."

"I'm Emiko."

"I AM A BANANA!!"

"…Squall." he raised an eyebrow at Chiharu, but said nothing. Chiharu, Kaya, and I exchanged glances and burst into laughter.

Nobody else really got it though, seeing as it was kind of an inside joke. Ping smiled politely and cleared his throat again.

"Well, it's very nice to meet all of you, but I umm… need to go join the rest of the Imperial army now."

Mushu protested. "Now, wait a minute Mula – err Ping! Don't you think it'd be a good idea to take them with us? I mean, I don't know about his friends here, but Sora is one heck of a fighter!"

He nodded. "I guess it wouldn't hurt. Would you guys mind coming with me? I might be able to fit in better if you all are there."

"Because you're a girl, right?" I blurted.

She blushed. "Umm… yes, but please don't tell anyone! I'll get in a lot of trouble if they find out about it. …My real name is Mulan."

"Don't worry. Your secret is safe with us." Sora promised.

Mulan looked relieved. "Thanks, guys. Let's get going."

We followed her out of the bamboo grove down a narrow path. With the trees and bamboo out of the way, we had a clear view of the camp ahead. There were lots of tents lined up, and lots of people were walking around.

And by people, I mean men. I suddenly began to wonder how my friends and I were going to fit in among a large group of Asian males. I mean, even our guys were dressed completely different from the guys in the encampment.

"Hey, this might be a stupid question, but are you sure they're gonna want a bunch of girls hanging around there?" Kaya asked, practically reading my mind.

The group stopped walking and Mulan turned to face us, looking each of us over in turn. She frowned and scratched her head.

"Umm… I didn't think about that." she admitted. "Maybe we should disguise you three as men too."

I blinked. "Mulan? Look at my hair. It's down to my waist. Not to mention – I'm wearing a pink dress. Explain to me how I will ever pass as a man, please."

She sighed. "I suppose you're right. But if I was able to get a change of clothes for each of you, and if Kaya and you cut your hair short—"

"NO." Kaya and I replied simultaneously.

"Look, we have to do this you guys. It's not that bad. Mulan still has shoulder-length hair. Besides, it will grow back eventually. Just get over it and cut it off." That was officially the first thing Squall had said since we'd gotten off of the Gummi Ship, so Chiharu applauded him.

"And the silent one speaks!" she laughed, slapping his arm playfully. Squall stared at her, but said nothing. "Haha, well it's really not a problem for me, seeing as my hair is already plenty short! I say you two should do it, it'll be fun!"

Mulan held up a finger. "Well, we could just get some helmets for the two of you and hide your hair under them. Would you prefer that?"

"Yeah," I nodded. "I definitely would prefer that over cutting it all off."

"Same," Kaya agreed with a smile. "It's taken me too long to get my hair to this length just to cut it all off."

"Then I'm going to go to the camp and try to steal some clothes and armor for you three. So… just wait here until I get back, ok?" Mulan spun around and left; and let me just say that her attempt to walk like a man had failed miserably – she looked like a retarded duck.

I sat down beside Chiharu on a boulder and picked up a pebble from the ground and tried to decide whether or not I wanted to throw it.

Sora sat next to me and my heart skipped a beat as his arm brushed against mine. "I wonder if there are heartless in this world." He leaned back on his hands and looked up to the sky.

"There are bound to be. All of the worlds are exposed to the darkness to some degree, and I doubt this world is any exception." Squall speculated.

"No hablo smart-people talk." Chiharu laughed.

"He said this world is bound to have some darkness in it." I said, giving her the dumbest look in the world.

At that point in time Mulan came running back with a pile of clothes and armor in the arms. She dropped all the clothes on a bolder sitting next to us, so of course we all scrambled to be the first to put on the armor. I was about to be first, but then Chiharu and kaya both grabbed one of my legs and pulled me to the ground and climbed on top of me. Well, we eventually got suited up and headed to the camp grounds.

We were standing in line to get some food when all of a sudden this ugly little man with a black eye pushed in front of us.

"Hey! No cutting!" Sora yelled.

"Yeah, we were here first!" I added.

The man grunted and pulled his arm back, letting loose a powerful punch to Sora's face. My eyes widened and I knelt beside him, taking his hand.

"Sora!! Are you ok?" I had forgotten that I was supposed to be acting like a man. Lucky for me though, everyone seemed to be too busy fighting to really pay attention to me. After attacking Sora, Kaya and Chiharu had both went after the little man. Sora seemed to be more angry than hurt, and he smiled half-heartedly at me before jumping back to his feet and joining Chiharu and kaya in the fight.

I blinked, looking around. Squall, Mulan, and I were the only ones not getting involved – at least for the moment. A tallish, skinny man and a huge, fat man cut into the line, pushing our friends and the ugly guy out of the way.

They both seemed to be ignoring the chaos happening right next to them. The skinny one laughed. "Hey! A space in line!"

The tall, fat one nodded, rubbing his large belly. "I wonder what they're serving for lunch today…"

I would have told them that they'd cut in front of us, but if they'd decided to start a fight with me, I was pretty sure I would lose. So I kept my mouth shut. When the short man finally managed to escape from Sora – who was dealing most of the damage – he grinned, and a trickle of blood seeped from his mouth.

"Knuckle sandwiches!" he yelled, punching the skinny guy in the stomach. Sora narrowed his eyes, dangerously and popped his knuckles. Hot.

"That does it!" he yelled, and made to grab the short guy.

Squall shook his head. "This… is obnoxious."

Finally, I snapped. "GUYS!!! STOP FIGHTING! This is fucking ridiculous!!!" I yelled. And, at last, they stopped and looked at me. All of them looked terrible, cut and bruised in various places.

"Soldiers! Get back in line!" a voice from behind me yelled. Instantly, everybody straightened up and formed a uniform line. A voice ahead of me whispered hoarsely, just loudly enough for me to hear. "It's the captain!"

The captain walked down the line, looking each of us over carefully. I blushed nervously when he got to me, and he stopped. _Ohh shit._

"You there, what is your name, soldier?" he inquired, making me turn even more red.

"Umm… uhh… Jesse! …Sir!" I stammered, trying my hardest to sound like a man. Obviously it hadn't helped much though, because he just narrowed his eyes at me suspiciously before going on to the next person.

Chiharu. Chiharu looked a lot more Asian than I did, so he just nodded to her before moving on to Kaya. Blonde, tanned, blue-eyed Kaya.

"And you, what is your name?"

"Charles, sir!" she replied smoothly. The captain then glanced at Sora briefly before addressing all five of us.

"You five. You're not Chinese, so what are you doing here? You should consider yourselves lucky if I don't kill you all on the spot for making a mockery of my army!"

Sora decided to speak in our defense. "You're right – we're not Chinese. We're from a completely different world. We've come here to make sure that this world is safe from the heartless and nobodies that are attacking the planets right now."

The captain frowned. "From another world, huh? Well, I don't know anything about heartless or nobo—" he stopped in mid-sentence and took a step back. There were heartless appearing out of the ground before us.

"Just as I suspected…" Squall murmured, readying his gunblade. Sora's Keyblade and mine seemed to appear in our hands simultaneously as the heartless grew in number. I gripped my weapon and charged at the nearest heartless, putting all of my strength behind a swing that annihilated it with one hit. I got so into fighting the heartless creatures that I failed to notice when my helmet fell off of my head. Hehe. Nobody else seemed to notice either until the heartless had vanished.

"…Is that a woman? In my camp?! Are you trying to humiliate me?!" the captain expressed his sexism by grabbing me by the collar and glaring intensely at me. I laughed nervously and looked helplessly at Sora.

"Help…?"

Sora nodded and spoke up. God I love that boy. "Ok, so we aren't Chinese. And we aren't all men. But these girls are just a tough as your strongest men, and if you will give us a chance, I'm sure we can prove that to you in time. The heartless in this world need to be taken care of, and where there are heartless, I am sure there are also nobodies. These enemies are more dangerous than you can possibly imagine, and it would be impossible to defeat them without us. Please accept our offer to assist you and your army in any way we can." he finished his speech and extended a gloved hand to the captain.

The silence that followed seemed to last forever, but after long consideration, the captain accepted Sora's offer and shook his hand. "Serve me well, and you shall be rewarded." he promised. "But, make a fool of me, and the punishment will be great."

"Fair enough," Sora agreed. Though I had to admit, I was still a little pissed that he was so sexist and completely rude to me. I mean, women are every bit as strong as men – and in some ways more so. We have better endurance, and we're smarter. So hah. Nonetheless, arguing with him about it was sure to only worsen matters, so I let it go.

The captain wasn't quite through with us anyway. "My name is Shang. Your battle skills are encouraging; keep it up. The five of you may have your own tent to stay in for as long as you remain with us. Sadly, there are only 2 beds, but we'll supply roll-out mattresses for you to sleep on. Your tent is all the way in the far corner. Over there." he pointed in the direction of it. "I suggest you get some food before it's all gone before doing anything else. That's all for now, soldiers." he saluted us and left.

"I hope he keeps his shirt off like that all the time." Chiharu commented with a laugh.

I pat her on the head and grinned. "I'm sure he will. Let's go get some food, fatty."

((YAYNESS I finally have completed a chapter!!! I'm uber excited, soo REVIEWREVIEWREVIEW!!!!!! And thanks soooo much to hitman33333 as ALWAYS for reviewing and being awesome!! So yeah, uhh review and I'll give you …a muffin? Yeah, a muffin, damnit. XD till next time!))

-Emiko


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